Crash Landing on Remnant
by Roughdragon
Summary: Running away from his fellow Tenno, Excalibur flees the Solar System, only to crash-land on a strange world named Remnant, where the threat isn't the Grineer or the Corpus, but dangerous crime syndicates and monstrous creatures called Grimm. When the Tenno come hunting, what will he do? I don't know much about the lore of Warframe, but I'll do better to look into it.
1. Chapter 1

Excalibur was running. Running from Tenno. His fellow Tenno. Why? He looked down at his wrist. Files of the Stalker were stored inside his Warframe, along with other information. Basically, he saw things he shouldn't have. His ship was up ahead. He turned around, and saw three other Tenno chasing him. Trinity, Ember, and Oberon. Luckily, he was faster, and jumped into his ship and took off, leaving the Tenno Dojo behind. He sighed and kneeled down on the navigation pad, deciding where to flee. He couldn't stay in the Solar System, for certain. The Tenno would find him right when he landed. He had to get out of the system, get to another outside planet possibly. Screw it. He set the ship to go full speed forwards, maybe he would hit a planet eventually. Meanwhile, he decided to read the files on the Stalker. He was accessing a terminal in the dojo, when all of a sudden, files started to appear on the screen. Files of the Stalker. The Stalker was an enemy of the Tenno; he had harassed them all the same, but they fought him off easily. It seemed strange to the Tenno that the Stalker would start a fight he couldn't win. Don't be mistaken, however, the Stalker was a deadly opponent. Memories of what happened to Nyx, another Tenno, flashed in Excalibur's mind. The Stalker killed her mercilessly, without remorse. Excalibur shook the memory out of his head, and projected the files onto the codex. There were mostly sightings of the Stalker, but there was one page of notes. From the Lotus herself.

 _-Progenitor is doing well. Too well. Will adjust this._

 _-Progenitor is resisting adjustment. Becoming self aware._

 _-Alpha is going just as planned. Initializing indoctorination protocol._

 _-Alpha is a success. The first of many._

 _Individual known as "Stalker" is causing some disturbance. Tenno will be sent to target._

Excalibur recognized the name, Stalker, but Progenitor? Alpha? Those were mysteries to him.

 _Beep! Beep!_ Excalibur turned and looked through the cockpit of his ship. There was a planet, fast approaching.

 _Alright then,_ he thought.

 _Let's see if I lose them._ He had turned off Ordis earlier because he was unquestionably loyal to the Lotus. He had too much control over the ship. Excalibur would have to land the Liset by himself. He approached the planet, and came into almost a low orbit, slowly getting closer to the surface.

 _Beep! Beep!_ Excalibur looked around, not seeing anything. What was going on? Suddenly, the ship seemed to break in two as it was hit by something. Excalibur was struggling with the controls, but the planet was fast approaching. He couldn't control the Liset.

 _Damn it,_ he thought. He held onto the edge of the ship and braced for impact. The ground was coming up to meet him, and then he crashed. All went black.

 **Meanwhile, in the Tenno Dojo**

"So you're telling me, Oberon, that with three Tenno, including yourself, you failed to retrieve a single fleeing Tenno who not only had to start up his ship, but disable Ordis, set a flight course, and manually pilot and calibrate his Liset. And you couldn't keep up with him?" The Lotus was furious. Any other Tenno could have gone rogue, and she wouldn't care, but Excalibur? He was one of the oldest Tenno. Her nails dug into her palm, drawing blood. He also had the files on the Stalker. Thankfully, he most likely wouldn't understand the files, but knowing the Stalker, he would find Excalibur, and tell him the truth of the Tenno. That couldn't happen. That will not happen. Excalibur had to be hunted down, quietly. The Tenno were exceptionally loyal to The Lotus, but Excalibur was their brother, and it would take a few months at most to convince them that he was a traitor. There were exceptions, however. Some of the newer Tenno have little allegiance to Excalibur; She would use them instead, while she convinced the others of Excalibur's treachery.

"Leave," The Lotus said. Oberon bowed, and left.

A painful ringing was the only thing Excalibur heard. He tried to move, and felt the shards of glass on the ground, and struggled to stand. He felt a sharp pain in his leg, and he fell back down, groaning. He saw the broken window. He had to get outside. He forced himself to stand, doing his best to ignore the stabbing pain in his leg. He limped towards the Liset's shattered window, and saw the planet he stumbled on. It was green, so much green. Trees as far as he could see. The grass swayed like the oceans of Uranus.

 _What is this feeling?_ He thought. Like a burning feeling in his chest.

 _What is the word… awe? Yes, this world is beautiful. Was this what Earth was like before…_ Suddenly, a bullet struck the side of the window where Excalibur stood. He drew his Nikana, and jumped out of the Liset, and landed with a painful thud.

 _This leg is going to be troublesome,_ he thought. He looked around.

 _That wasn't a Grineer nor Corpus bullet, so what was it?_ He looked around some more. He hated fighting new threats. Didn't know enough about them. He caught something in the corner of his eye, and he quickly spun, and saw nothing.

 _What was that?_ He scanned the trees, the flowing grass. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain, and fell to the ground before he even heard the shot. Suddenly, many pairs of stark, white legs surrounded him, filling his field of view. He looked up, and saw a soldier of some sort.

 _A robot. Corpus? This far out?_ Another soldier, not mechanical, stepped out from behind the automaton, pointing his gun towards Excalibur.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" The soldier asked. Excalibur didn't answer.

"Maybe it's a new type of Grimm?" Another Human soldier said.

"No, this one landed in a spaceship. We have to call this one in." He placed his gloved hand on his ear, activating some kind of earpiece.

"General Ironwood, we have something unusual… A spaceship sir… Yes sir, we'll bring him to you right away." He lowered his gun, and pulled out a pair of hand bindings. The robot soldiers kept careful watch of Excalibur while the soldier slipped the metal bindings onto Excalibur's wrists. They stood him up, and began to walk through the forest.

"Where am I?" Excalibur asked. A couple of soldiers gasped.

"You… you talk?" One of the soldiers asked.

"Of course I do. Now explain to me where you're taking me." The one who seemed to be the leader regained his composure and answered.

"You have landed next to Beacon, a school for Hunters and Huntresses. We're taking you to our leader, of sorts." Excalibur raised his bound hands.

"Is this really necessary?" He shook the heavy bindings.

"Sorry, you're still an unknown threat. We can't trust you."

"You're trusting me now, as far as I can see. I can break these chains any time I choose." The trees parted, and revealed a massive tower and surrounding buildings. To Excalibur, it made him wonder if the old Orokin cities looked like this; beautiful.

"Yeah sure, tough talk from the _bound_ prisoner. You know what, I think–" He never got to finish his sentence. Quick as lightning, Excalibur snapped the bonds, and was reaching for his Nikana.


	2. Chapter 2

"The preparations for the Vytal festival have been made. However, General Ironwood, I do believe the presence of your army will incite some… uneasiness among the people attending," Glynda Goodwitch stated. Ironwood stood at attention, like he almost always did. He was very much a soldier, after all. Can't shake old habits.

"The Vytal festival is the largest event in all of the kingdoms. Added security is necessary, if not required if we are to ensure the safety of not only your people in Beacon Academy, but the people in all of the surrounding kingdoms who visit, especially with the recent Grimm attack led by Torchwick and the White Fang!" He retorted. Ozpin sat there in his chair as usual. Every now and then he would take a sip from his mug, but for the most part he sat and listened. He knew that the added security for the festival would indeed protect from any threats, and may even be a necessary show of force to dissuade any would-be assailants. He took another sip from his mug.

 _But then people will know that they are in danger. Where there is danger, there is fear and anger. Where there is fear and anger, there are Grimm._ He noticed that one of the elevators was coming up.

 _Strange, I wasn't expecting anyone else today. Maybe it's that drunk Qrow._ While Glynda and Ironwood were arguing, the elevator settled, and the doors opened. All three of them turned to see a… man? The figure looked like it was wearing some kind of suit over its body. There was a strange, alien feeling about this thing. It looked otherworldly and outright creepy if you looked at the details of its figure. Worst of all, it had a bloody katana in one hand, and a detached Atlas bot head in the other. Immediately, Glynda and Ironwood drew their weapons. However, Ozpin remained in his seat, his hand on his cane.

"What the hell is this?" Ironwood demanded, pointing his revolver towards the newcomer. The thing dropped the bot's head, making a loud _Clank!_ on the ground as it rolled to a stop. It sheathed its katana, still keeping its hand on the grip.

"You tell me. When I landed, I was greeted by your soldiers. At first I presumed I landed on a Corpus-controlled planet, due to the robots. But I realized that no Corpus-controlled planet still has plantation growing on it, much less grass, because they harvest the wildlife for their own needs." He looked directly at Ironwood, who suddenly had chills running down his spine.

"What are you blathering on about? What are the 'Corpus?'" Glynda demanded. The thing looked at her.

"You don't know? Not surprising, you aren't military." He looked back at Ironwood. "But you are. So tell me, _General_ Ironwood, why did my Liset malfunction as I was just flying over your planet?" Ironwood tried to regain his composure, but the strange man had an unsettling feeling to him, an alien feeling which kept him off balance this whole time.

"I don't know. A scouting team reported a crash in the fields, but since then, they haven't contacted me." He eyed the man's bloody sword, and came to a staggering realization. However, Glynda spoke before he did.

"You _killed_ those men!" Glynda shouted. The man seemed to shrug.

"They took me prisoner. My past experiences taught me that being captured is certainly worse than death, and I acted accordingly." He seemed to notice Ozpin, who was startlingly quiet.

"You. Who are you?" He asked. Ozpin stood up from his chair.

"My name is Ozpin, and I am the headmaster of Beacon Academy, this complex you have just walked into. If you aren't from this world, I understand that you may be confused with your current situation. But I need you to tell me why you are here so that we can understand each other, and talk in a less… tense setting." Ironwood shook his head.

 _This thing is a cold blooded killer. There isn't anything it understands more than combat. How can we possibly reason with such a thing?_ So he was surprised when the thing let go of its katana, and did some sort of bow.

"Fine," was all it said. It stayed standing, like a statue. Ozpin nodded, and sat back down.

"So who are you, and what is your purpose for coming here?" Ozpin asked.

"My name is Excalibur, and I am fleeing from my fellow Tenno."

"And what are these Tenno?" Ozpin asked. Ironwood and Glynda started to relax, but still stayed a "safe" distance from Excalibur.

"We Tenno are a race of warriors who follow the Lotus." he seemed to cringe when he said the last word.

"We followed her, killed for her, and risked our very lives for her."

"So what changed with you?" Ozpin asked.

"I discovered something which was not meant to be seen by the Tenno, hidden from us by the Lotus."

"And what was it?" Ozpin asked.

"A file on an enemy of the Tenno: The Stalker, along with other names such as Progenitor and Alpha. The last two I cannot say I know, but I know the Stalker well enough. He hunts down and attacks Tenno, wherever they may be. Why the Lotus was hiding this information, I don't know. But it seems important enough that she sent three other tenno, Oberon, Trinity, and Ember, to stop me."

"Well, that seems very interesting. If you are trying to hide from your fellow Tenno, you may use one of our vacant rooms in the academy. Just make sure you aren't caught by the students." Both Ironwood and Glynda shot Ozpin dirty looks. Excalibur hesitated for a moment.

"Fine. Where is the room?"

"280. At the edge of the dorms."

"We Tenno do not need sleep, only meditation. However, I thank you for this accommodation." He bowed, and stepped into the elevator, riding it down to the dorms. Ironwood slammed his fist onto Ozpin's desk. Ozpin didn't flinch.

"Have you gone insane? You would let that thing around civilians? Students?" Ozpin glared at Ironwood.

"The decision was not an easy one. But what was I going to do? Turn him loose on the city, without a ship to bring him off of Remnant? Your ships can't go out of orbit, Ironwood. And until they can, he will stay with us, understood?"

"Understood," he said through clenched teeth.

Excalibur made it to his room with little difficulty. Loki was usually the one for tricks and stealth, but Excalibur snuck past through the students with ease. He entered the room, and saw through the window the city these Humans called Vale. He wouldn't admit it openly, but the city was beautiful. People walked up and down the busy streets, vehicles moved across the winding roads, airships patrolled the sky. To Excalibur, it was the only _humane_ thing he had ever seen in his years of service to the Lotus. Suddenly, he began to see shadows in the corners of his eyes. A wave of nausea overtook him. He knew this feeling all too well. It was the feeling of Dread, Despair, and Hate. It was the Stalker. He appeared next to Excalibur, his dark bow drawn. Excalibur had both hands on his Nikana, ready to strike.

"So, Excalibur, you run from your Lotus? For what reason?"

Excalibur hesitated. He didn't want to tell anything to the Stalker, the one who murdered Nyx, but strangely, he felt almost familiar to him. The Stalker was his only link to the old world, the world of the Grineer, the Corpus, the Infested, and the Tenno.

"I discovered a file about you. Tell me, do the words 'Progenitor' and 'Alpha' mean anything to you?" The Stalker relaxed his draw on the bowstring a little.

"Yes, they do. But I didn't come here to kill you, Excalibur, I came here to warn you."

"Warn me of what?" Excalibur asked.

"Of your fellow Tenno, obviously. The Lotus has sent some of the newer ones to find you. I'm sure you know which ones I'm talking about; Ivara, Wukong, the new ones who were freshly indoctrinated by the Lotus. You were that way too, Excalibur, when I first fought you. You wouldn't stop going on about the glory of the Lotus and how she saved you. Funny, now look where you are. A foreign planet filled with people who aren't too fond of their own people, much less actual aliens."

"We are Human too, Stalker. Do not forget that."

"Oh, is that the Lotus talking? Or do you really believe that the powerless individuals on this planet are in any way similar to you and I? Think, Excalibur. And goodbye, for now." He threw down a smoke bomb, and disappeared. Instantly, the feeling of nausea passed, and he was back to normal. Only now, he had more pressing matters to attend to. Mostly the Tenno coming to hunt him down.


	3. Chapter 3

The Lotus stood in front of all of her Tenno, excluding Ivara and Wukong, since they were already in pursuit of Excalibur. All of the Tenno, old and new, were there. She cleared her throat, and began to speak.

"My Tenno, I am sorry to tell you that Excalibur, our oldest and most loyal Tenno, has betrayed us." This drew murmurs and whispers from the Tenno down below. Nova was whispering to Rhino, who had his arms crossed. He didn't believe for a second that Excalibur would do such a thing without good reason. In fact, many of the older Tenno believed the same. They knew Excalibur, and knew that he wouldn't do something so rash for no reason. Ember and Trinity were near the side of the dojo, talking to each other.

"I know Excalibur, and even while we were chasing him down that day with Oberon, I didn't want to catch him, even though it was against the Lotus's word," Trinity said. Ember nodded.

"I feel the same way. Something about this is not right. There must be some kind of misunderstanding. Excalibur would never betray his fellow Tenno." The Lotus waited for the noise to die down, and continued.

"I am sure that the Tenno close to Excalibur will feel differently about this, and I understand that it is hard to realize we have had a traitor in our midst, but we must stand together and stop him before he becomes even more dangerous. If we work together, we can make sure he does not endanger us, and stop him once and for all." More talking. Louder this time. Loki and Mirage stood at the very back of the room, away from the other Tenno.

"I think she's right, Loki. He has our secrets, and who knows what happens if they get out?" Loki dismissed the thought that Excalibur was a traitor. A traitor to the Lotus maybe, but not a traitor to his fellow Tenno.

"Listen, Mirage. I have known Excalibur for longer than any other Tenno in this room. He is not an enemy. You haven't been by his side and fought with him, suffered with him, and nearly died with him enough to tell me that he is a traitor to us Tenno."

"Those seem to be traitorous words, Loki. Be careful of whom you utter them to," Mirage said, and walked into the throng of Tenno. Ash walked up alongside Loki, leaning back on the wall next to him.

"And I thought that you were reasonable than that, Loki." Ash said.

"You can't possibly believe that Excalibur is a traitor," Loki said. Ash shrugged.

"Whether he is or is not, I cannot tell. I certainly haven't known him for as long as you have, however, I do know that he has fled without stating why, with Tenno secrets, and that now he is on another planet in a different system hiding from the Lotus." He turned to walk away, but stopped.

"I will not risk my life and my honor to the Lotus by aiding Excalibur, but… If you are so convinced that Excalibur is innocent, the Lotus has given everyone the location of the planet, in case we need to bring Excalibur back by force. If you want to instead use the coordinates to help Excalibur, I will let you. However, if you stand in the Tenno's way, we will destroy you, Loki." Ash stalked away, disappearing into the group of Tenno.

 _What "Honor" do you possess, Ash, if you will not stand up for your brothers in arms?_ Loki thought to himself as he approached his ship.

Wukong and Ivara both approached the planet in their Lisets.

"Do you have a lock on his ship?" Wukong asked over his communicator.

"Yes, it is landed next to a city, in the middle of a forest," Ivara said.

"Good. If he is still in there, we can drag him out easily enough." They both pulled their Lisets down into orbit, passing the cracked moon, and down through the atmosphere and into the forest. They hovered over Excalibur's crashed ship, and dropped down next to it.

"It seems heavily damaged. He must have fled into the city," Ivara said.

"Yes, but where in the city?" Wukong asked.

"You stay here and guard our Lisets, Wukong. I see his footprints in the grass. Wukong looked around the flowing grass, not seeing anything particularly significant.

"I don't see anything," he said. Ivara chuckled.

"Of course you don't. Tracking is an art, only some Tenno can truly master it. Of course, some of us just have the natural ability." Wukong nodded.

"You're boasting right now, Ivara. I get it." She stalked off in the direction of the prints, being careful not to disturb them.

"If Excalibur resists, you come and help. Understand?"

"Of course," Wukong said. He gave his staff a twirl. Ivara nodded, and she was off, following the footprints through the woods.

It seems that Excalibur was captured, but where was he taken? She continued to follow the prints until she reached a clearing full of dead bodies, some Human, some robot. She drew her bow and looked around at the dead soldiers.

The cuts are fairly clean. No doubt the handiwork of Excalibur. She continued to investigate, trying to find any sign of the rogue Tenno.

Not all of them were Human. Corpus, maybe? She saw a track of bloody footprints leading out of the clearing and into the city. She made herself invisible, and silently ran through the streets, dodging cars and people along the way. The prints were faint by now, but Ivara knew where he went, she could smell him in the air. She gazed up at the massive tower in front of her, the students passing in and out of the building.

This is it. She walked towards the huge building, taking in as much of the surroundings she could.

This place is beautiful, really. Much, much more beautiful than Earth. Definitely not Corpus. She almost ran right into two girls, one dressed in a yellow and brown jacket with yellow bracelets and the other, younger one dressed in a wide black and red dress.

"You excited for the tournament, Ruby? I sure am!" The blond one exclaimed. The Red one shrugged.

"I don't know, Yang, we're only in our first year! How about the other two and three year students? How're we going to beat them?" She asked.

"Stop worrying so much, we'll do fine! Didn't we just fight off an army of Grimm?" The two continued to walk away, and Ivara couldn't hear the rest. No matter. Her mission wasn't to eavesdrop on students. She looked back towards Excalibur's footsteps. They seemed to lead inside the tower. She spotted rows of windows along the side of the building. If Excalibur were to hide somewhere, this place would be it.

But which room? She stood very still, blocking out all sound except the sound of the Tenno. Soon, all of the Human sounds were blocked out, and she heard only one sound: The sound of a Tenno. Near the base of the tower, the 280th room. She walked towards the window. She wouldn't try to fight him, that wasn't her order. Her order was to bring him back, no matter the method. She drew her bow.

Excalibur was meditating, mumbling out random Orokin words. Suddenly, he stopped. He sensed someone. Another Tenno. He turned to the window, and detected a slight shimmer in the frame. Unnoticable by anyone other than a Tenno. He quickly grabbed his Nikana, ready to strike at the intruder.

"I see you, Tenno. Show yourself." The figure de-cloaked, and revealed the low, floral form of Ivara. Her bow wasn't drawn, the arrows were pointed at the ground.

"The Lotus orders you to come back to the Dojo, Excalibur." He shook his head.

"I will not, no matter what you or the Lotus say."

"Excalibur, do you dare denounce the Lotus?" She asked, an audible edge in her voice. He already knew the answer, but after years serving her, it was still a difficult thing to do. He gripped his Nikana even tighter.

"Yes," Excalibur said. Ivara visibly recoiled from this announcement. She recovered after a few seconds, however. She drew back her bow and pointed it at Excalibur's chest.

"Then I consider you an enemy of the Tenno, and I will deal with you like one." She activated a device on her arm.

"Wukong, it's time."


	4. Chapter 4

Wukong received Ivara's transmission, and was off, dashing through the thick forest. He batted branches out of his way, leaped through the trees, and finally came into the clearing, where the city was visible. The streets were empty, cars were abandoned, and people were running and screaming, pointing towards some kind of commotion. Wukong headed towards the source of the distress, no doubt the two Tenno. He stopped at the courtyard as two streaks of color blasted out of one of the rooms in the tower. They landed, face to face. Excalibur had his Nikana drawn, and Ivara was raising her Artemis bow, aiming for another shot.

 _Oh, this is going to be fun,_ Wukong thought.

Excalibur slashed towards Ivara, leaving a shower of sparks in his wake. She jumped high into the air, barely avoiding the deadly blade. She hovered in the air for a second, and let loose a volley of arrows from her bow. Excalibur sidestepped the arrows with ease and jumped towards Ivara as she landed, Nikana ready.

 _I have you now,_ Excalibur thought. He swung the deadly blade, towards Ivara's neck, but was blocked by something. A staff.

 _Wukong._ The monkey-like Tenno twisted, and kicked Excalibur back, sending him tumbling head-over-heels until he landed safely. Ivara stood a ways behind Wukong, her bow drawn.

"Wrong choice, Excalibur," Wukong said, twirling his staff. Excalibur stood back up.

"Maybe, but the fact that the Lotus sent a kill squad after me does not make me any more sympathetic towards her."

"She sent us so we can bring you back, Excalibur. It's been an easy mission so far," Wukong remarked.

"I am not going back. And I will not change my mind, no matter what you say."

"Fine, the Lotus told us to kill you and take the files if necessary, and it seems we will after all." Wukong extended his staff, doubling its size. Ivara drew back multiple arrows on her bow, ready to fire. Excalibur concentrated, and held his hands out in front of him. Particles of blue energy began to form in his palms. Those particles of light began to form a blade, and from the blade, an exalted Skana, a weapon he had mastered long ago. He pointed the ethereal blade towards the pair of Tenno, challenging them.

"If you want those files, then come and take them." Without warning, Wukong sprinted towards Excalibur, staff spinning. Excalibur stood his ground, and waited. Wukong drew ever closer, and prepared to strike. At the last second, Excalibur thrust his Skana into the ground, sending shrapnel and energy shooting out in all directions. Wukong couldn't react in time, and was hit full force by the concussive wave, throwing him back a few dozen feet. He recovered quickly, however, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The cloud began to move towards Excalibur, who was backed up to the tower wall. Wukong materialized in front of Excalibur, and whacked him in the head with his staff. Excalibur staggered back, dazed. Wukong gave him no time to recover, and followed up with a violent jab to the gut, along with a knee to the head. Excalibur fell to the ground, dizzy. Wukong stood over him, staff held over his head.

"One last chance, Excalibur. Give us the files, or I smash in your head." Excalibur chuckled.

"And now I see why I ran. Look at what the Lotus has done to you. You would go so far as to murder a Tenno in cold blood?"

"If the Lotus commands it, then yes, I will." Wukong raised his staff, prepared to bring it down on his head.

"Fine. Do it then." Wukong hesitated. His arm trembled slightly. Excalibur knew it. Even when given orders, Tenno are still reluctant when it comes to killing their brethren. In the corner of his eye, he spotted a grey blur, moving towards them.

"Wukong, look out!" Ivara yelled behind them.

"What?" Wukong said, then Excalibur heard a horrible screeching and ripping, and suddenly the sharp blade of a Skana jutted out of Wukong's chest. Excalibur was shocked.

 _What just happened?_ He thought as Wukong toppled to the ground, dead. He looked at the newcomer, and instantly recognized him.

"Loki? How?" Excalibur asked, still stunned by Wukong's sudden demise.

"Because unlike the newer Tenno, I'm loyal to my brothers and sisters, not the Lotus." Ivara cried out, realizing that Wukong was dead. Loki offered his hand. Excalibur took it, and Loki pulled him up to his feet. Ivara was running away into the forest, trying to get back to her Liset. Excalibur began to follow her, but Loki stopped him.

"Let her go. The forest is her home, you'll never catch her. Besides, the other Tenno are already coming here to either help or harm you. The Lotus has ordered us to 'Cleanse' this planet, in case any of the files are lingering here.

"What? These are the only Humans we have come into contact with outside the System. Do the other Tenno stand for this?"

"The older Tenno are completely opposed, and even the newer ones are reluctant to do so, even if they agree to it." Excalibur nodded.

"I see. Well, at least the older ones still contain their humanity."

"The Lotus cannot stop the older Tenno from helping you, Excalibur, but by now, she knows of our treachery, and she will turn the new against the old." Excalibur looked at Wukong, who lay on the ground, dead.

"I had to, Excalibur. He was going to kill you." Excalibur nodded.

"I understand, I just never meant for any Tenno to die." Loki put his hand on Excalibur's shoulder reassuringly.

"We do what is necessary to protect the Tenno order, Excalibur. If the Lotus must be stopped to do so, then so be it, she will be stopped." Excalibur nodded. Then he had an idea.

"Loki, if the old Tenno choose to stand with us, even they may not be enough to defend against both the Lotus and the new Tenno. But the people on this planet are warriors. If we can convince them to help us, then we might have a chance."

"Excalibur, the Humans in the Solar System won't go anywhere near us, so what makes you think these particular Humans will help us?"

Excalibur thought for a moment. He'd snuck around for a bit inside the tower, listened to conversations among the students. Since they attended a school of fighters, he had imagined they would be discussing battle plans, or when they would raid a rival city. But no. They spoke about peace, balance, and their everyday lives. He felt that these particular people were much, much different from the war-obsessed Grineer, or the devious, conniving Corpus. Even the Tenno, which now turned against their own kind. These Humans had heart, an honor within them that Excalibur thought was all but lost within people. So he made up his mind. He will fight for these Humans, possibly the last real Humans he would ever see. Ironwood and Glynda rushed out, their weapons drawn. Loki drew his, but Excalibur held him back.

"They are not our enemies, Loki. We agreed to help them, remember?" Loki hesitated for a moment, and sheathed his sword.

"What the hell happened?" Ironwood demanded. He stood back when he saw the late Wukong, who still lay on the ground.

"The Tenno are coming, Ironwood, and you must fight," Excalibur explained.

"Fight? How many are coming? A hundred? A thousand?"

"About twenty five, some are friendly, some are not." Ironwood had a confused look on his face.

"Twenty five? Can't you and the friendlies fight back yourselves?"

"Maybe, but it's a slim chance, and I will admit, even if you do help, the chances will still be small. However, the Lotus has ordered a Cleanse of this planet. I'm sure you know what that implies."

"You mean the Tenno loyal to the Lotus will attempt to destroy all life on this planet? That's impossible!" Glynda replied. Loki laughed.

"You seem to underestimate the power of us Tenno. One lone Tenno can wipe out an entire Fomorian ship. The only reason Wukong here is dead is because we were here to stop him. He had orders to purge all life on this planet, starting with this school." The two Humans thought about this for a moment.

"Alright, what will we have to do?" Ironwood asked.

"Mobilize all of your competent fighters. The assault starts here, and so we will wait for them here," Excalibur explained.

"Wait, so does that mean our students?" Glynda demanded.

"It is for the sake of your entire planet. Evacuate the civilians, but keep the fighters." Glynda was fuming, but Ironwood nodded reluctantly.

"Ironwood, you can't possibly think–" Glynda began.

"I'm sorry, Glynda, but Excalibur and his friend–"

"Loki," he cut in.

"Right, Loki. But they're right if what they're saying is true. We have to warn everyone, including the other kingdoms. Get to the tower, and warn them." Glynda reluctantly nodded, and headed for the tower.

The Stalker sat in his own modified Liset in orbit around Remnant. He meditated over the navigation pad, observing all below.

 _Soon Lotus, the truth will be revealed, and your Tenno will discover what they really are, how you gave them no choice._ He opened his eyes as his Liset's alarm sounded.

 _The Tenno are here, and so are you, in your mothership. Good. The Tenno will finally know what you did to them._


	5. Chapter 5

Excalibur stood in the outskirts of Beacon as he scanned the sky. They were coming. He could feel it. He hoped that the older Tenno would get here before the newer ones did. A single Liset broke the cloud cover and headed down towards Excalibur. Loki was off with Glynda, helping to evacuate civilians, so Excalibur would have to deal with whoever was in this first Liset. The bottom hatch opened, and a white-green Tenno dropped down, a massive Magistar mace in his right hand. Excalibur nodded his head.

"Oberon?" The paladin-like Tenno pointed his mace towards Excalibur threateningly.

"You betrayed us, Excalibur. You betrayed the Lotus. The Tenno have no choice but to eliminate rogues like you, Excalibur." Excalibur nodded, and drew his Nikana. He flipped the sword, wielding the blade in a reverse grip.

"Then so be it. If you intend to kill me, you should do it quickly, before the others get here."

"The older Tenno? They are relics of an older time. Old, defective machines beyond repair. You can't expect them to best us, do you? Even if they side with you, us newer Tenno outnumber you two-to-one." Excalibur chuckled.

"Good. Then it will be a fair fight." They both charged towards each other, Oberon dragging his Magistar behind him and Excalibur dashing with his Nikana in hand. Both of them blurs of white and grey until they collided, cracking the ground beneath them. Oberon pushed Excalibur back, and tried for another swing, bringing the mace down towards Excalibur's head. Excalibur raised his Nikana, and the Magistar struck the blade, but slid down the side and smashed into the ground, missing him. Again and again, Oberon swung the massive mace at Excalibur, but each time, he dodged it cleanly. Excalibur saw an opening, and struck as quick as lightning, stabbing through Oberon's leg.

"Damn!" Oberon yelled, and Excalibur pulled the sword out, and flicked the blood onto the ground. Oberon had his hand over the wound on his leg.

"You've gotten faster, Excalibur." He seemed to grin behind his helmet as another Liset broke the cloud cover and dropped a Tenno to the surface. Excalibur looked to see who it was, and started to become nervous.

 _Valkyr._ Excalibur took a couple of steps back. She had no weapons, only her super-sharp claws, which could tear through a warframe with a well placed swipe.

"Let's see how fast you are now, Excalibur," Oberon said. Without warning, Valkyr charged towards Excalibur screaming a war cry, the light from her extended claws leaving behind a trail of orange energy. Excalibur tried to block her swipe, but she batted the sword out of his hands, sending it clattering away. She launched a flurry of attacks towards Excalibur, who was trying to dodge and weave between the strikes. For the most part he was successful in avoiding the berserker's attacks, but he forgot about Oberon, who slammed his mace into Excalibur's chest, sending him flying several meters away. He landed hard facedown, and rolled over, clutching his bleeding chest. The flanged spikes of the mace had punctured his Warframe, cutting into the flesh underneath. Oberon approached the downed Excalibur, ready to execute the fallen Tenno.

"Defeated before the Tenno could even reach you? That is pitiful, Excalibur. I've defeated Prodmen who put up a better fight." Oberon turned to look at the clouds, where no other Liset was seen.

"In a way, Excalibur, I feel sorry for you. Left alone on an alien planet, with nothing but inferior Humans surrounding you. I admit, I would go insane as well." He leaned down, closer to Excalibur's face.

"Once I am done here, Excalibur, I will do to the old Tenno what I will do to you. The Lotus doesn't have to know. I will explain to her that the older Tenno were becoming liabilities, that they were becoming dangerous to the Tenno cause. She won't know, and honestly, she won't care. We are all tools of the Lotus, Excalibur. That is the plain truth. However, a craftsman favors some tools over others, and you, Excalibur? You have outlived your usefulness."

"I always knew you were jealous of me, Oberon. I was the original, the default choice for a leader. But you had to have all of the power to yourself. For a paladin, I would say that is quite dishonorable." If Oberon's face was visible, Excalibur would see his features twist into a furious sneer. Oberon raised his mace.

"Enough talk. Goodbye forever, Excalibur." He started to bring down the Magistar as a sniper's bullet struck the mace, deflecting it away. Excalibur turned his head towards the newcomer, and was shocked with disbelief. It was the strangest sight he had ever seen: Four girls stood in front of the Tenno. Red, White, Black, and Yellow.

The Stalker boarded the Lotus's mothership, a massive sprawl which looked more like a space station than anything else. He held his bow at the ready and scoured the nearly empty vessel.

 _It seems that all of the Tenno had headed for the planet,_ he thought. The Stalker headed towards the flight deck, where he was sure there was somebody. The door opened, and revealed a massive, Orokin based room, gold decoration and all that. The Lotus herself was standing in the middle, facing the windows.

"I know you're here, Stalker. No need to sneak around." The Stalker tightened the grip on his bow.

"Let's use my real name, Lotus. The one you gave me." The Lotus turned towards him.

"And what is that?" she asked.

"Progenitor."

Lotus sighed.

"I did what I had to do to preserve the Tenno, Progenitor. If I didn't, who knows what would have happened?" Progenitor shot an arrow, which flew by her head, slicing through the wall.

"Tell another lie, and the next one goes through your neck." He drew another arrow.

"I am telling the truth, Progenitor. The Warframes were too… radical. Too unpredictable. They were too different from each other."

"And isn't that what a Human is supposed to be? Different? Radical? Unpredictable? Humans are not Corpus machines, Lotus. I tried to stop you, but you turned the first one, the Alpha, against me. Almost killed me on the spot. So I ran while you created more and more of those monstrosities you call Warframes. You hunted me down with those new ones, didn't you? With every new Warframe produced, another Stalker hunter was created. They were so loyal to you, Lotus. But now the tables have turned, haven't they? Now Excalibur fights for me, along with the old ones." The Lotus laughed.

"Progenitor, you aren't the only one who has trained for battle all these years." She held out her arm, and a destructive blue beam shot out of her palm, hitting the Stalker and sending him flying towards the wall. He fell to the ground, winded.

"This ends here once and for all, Progenitor."


	6. Chapter 6

Meanwhile, down on the planet, Oberon and Valkyr were swinging wildly at the four newcomers. Ruby, the young girl dressed in red, used her sniper-scythe to shoot at the two Tenno while Yang, Weiss, and Blake pummeled them up close.

 _Damn Humans! How are they moving so quickly!_ Oberon couldn't keep up. When he blocked a stab from Blake's sword, he was struck in the face by Yang's armored hand. When he deflected a bullet from Ruby's rifle, Weiss struck him with an ice spell.

 _Enough of this._ He threw his arm out, and all four of the young warriors stopped in their tracks, floating in the air.

"Whoa, what?" Yang said.

"What's happening?" Ruby exclaimed. Oberon threw his hand down, and all four of them slammed into the ground, hard. They were all stunned for a moment, lying in the dirt. More Lisets appeared in the sky, dropping more Tenno. Excalibur noted Nezha, Atlas, Equinox, Chroma, Mesa, Limbo, Mirage, Hydroid, Zephyr, Nekros, Nova, Vauban, Banshee, Saryn, and Frost.

 _Where are all of the old Tenno? They should be here by now… hopeless… it's all hopeless…_ His vision began to fade. As darkness blotted out the corners of his vision, he saw more Humans appear. He didn't know their names, but he saw their weapons. A minigun, a massive pink hammer, a golden spear and shield, a… camera? Before he could see more, his vision faded, and he was no longer conscious.

"By now, Progenitor, the Tenno have most likely killed Excalibur and taken over the city. Why do you waste my time?" The Lotus shot out another beam, and the Stalker rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding the deadly energy. He clutched his chest.

 _That last hit nearly destroyed my Warframe. I cannot risk being hit again._ He raised his head towards the Lotus.

"Because the Tenno deserve to know the truth!" He shot an arrow towards the Lotus, but she vaporized the projectile as soon as it left his bow.

"They don't need to know, Progenitor. In fact, they all seem fairly content with their service, besides Excalibur, of course."

"The old Tenno have their doubts," The Stalker said.

"Oh yes, the old ones. Yes, I know. They weren't smart enough to disable the Ordis in their Lisets, unlike Excalibur. So I commanded their ships to lock down, preventing them from escaping and locking the Tenno inside." The Stalker felt as if he was hit by a baton.

 _If the Tenno couldn't make it to the planet, then Excalibur would surely die, but maybe he garnered some favor with the Humans. They would surely fight long enough for Excalibur to get away. I have to warn him._ He tried to teleport out to his ship, to focus his energy, but nothing happened.

 _What? How?_ He thought. The Lotus laughed.

"Are you trying to escape? Don't worry, your powers do not work in here, Stalker." He sighed. He knew he couldn't defeat the Lotus head on, but maybe he could distract her long enough… He dropped his bow, and brought out his dark scythe.

 _Well, time to do something selfless for once in my life. Excalibur, I hope you kill her when this is all over._ He shouted one last time, and charged full speed towards the Lotus.

Excalibur jolted awake, feeling the ground shake beneath his warframe. He was being dragged away by someone. He turned his head to look at his savior.

"Loki?" Excalibur said.

"You're fine, Excalibur, don't worry. Your warframe sealed itself up while you were unconscious." Excalibur looked around. He was in the middle of the street, the sounds of battle a couple of blocks away.

"I have to get back there," Excalibur said.

"You can't. The old Tenno are nowhere to be found, and the warriors here can only hold them off for so long. You must hide away, Excalibur."

"The Lotus ordered a cleanse of this planet, which means that they will wipe out every single living thing on this planet. I have no choice but to fight, Loki." Loki shook his head.

"Fine. We will stand together this one last time."

The Stalker ducked, rolled, and dodged the Lotus's energy beams, trying to find some kind of chink in her armor.

"Give up, Progenitor. You will find no weakness within me." She followed up with another energy blast, which barely singed his warframe. He grabbed his arm, feeling blood leaking from the wound.

 _Those blasts are far too powerful for me to fight directly, and I can only run for so long._ He remembered a new power he had recently acquired, thanks to Nyx. Suddenly, he knew exactly what to do.

 _Let's see how strong these walls really are, Lotus._ He threw down a smoke bomb, turning invisible for the moment.

"You say you care for the Tenno, Lotus, but now I know that you lie to yourself." She paused, listening.

"You never cared for the Tenno. You made them your mere slaves, Lotus. You stripped them of their emotions, mutilated them, lied to them, and you have the _nerve_ to tell me that you actually care for them as your children? What a disgraceful mother." He appeared in front of the Lotus, unarmed.

"So do it then, kill me." The Lotus's hands glowed a furious red instead of their usual blue.

"Gladly." Streams of red energy swirled around her arms as she prepared to wipe the Stalker out of existence. The streams of red spun faster and faster around her, and then she let loose a devastating beam of energy powerful enough to cut an entire ship in two. For the Stalker, it was his weapon as well.

 _I suppose it's now or never,_ the Stalker thought. He exhaled, and formed a swirling, black energy bubble around himself. The Lotus's devastating beam struck the bubble, and the entire mothership shook to its very foundation. The Stalker could feel the pure energy washing over him, covering him, and most of all, absorbed into the bubble itself.

 _So much power… can't contain it all…_ the Stalker willed himself on, as he could feel the energy eating away at his warframe, ripping apart the suit bit by bit. Finally, when the power spike reached its climax, the Stalker released the bubble, and suddenly, everything; the walls, the Lotus, the ship, it all blew away, scattered about in space. For a moment, he felt completely at peace. The Tenno, the Lotus, they were no more in his mind. He knew he was exposed to the vacuum, he knew he would not survive this, but at the moment, he was… okay with it. But just as he was about to drift away forever, he saw the Lisets, six of them. The old ones.

 _Stand together, Tenno. Maybe someday, you will rebuild the order._

The Stalker sighed, and drifted off into a deep, everlasting sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Oberon faced off against a Human with a mace similar to his. He had orange-brownish hair, and wore heavy armor.

 _Too easy,_ Oberon thought. The Human winded up his swing, but before he could follow through, Oberon jabbed his Magistar into his stomach, sending him flying back into the fray. Further away, Yang and Atlas exchanged blows, each punch seemingly shaking the ground beneath them. The blasts from Yang's gauntlets seemed to do little damage to Atlas's rocky exterior, and so he wound up his arm, and sent Yang flying back with a devastating punch. Many more of these fights went on, seemingly one sided. The rest of the Huntsmen were thrown back into a corner, completely surrounded by the Tenno. Oberon limped to the front of the group, so that he could face the Humans directly.

 _They're scared,_ Oberon thought. _And rightfully so, sending their children to fight us!_

"Tell me, Humans, where is Excalibur?" Oberon asked. The people looked at each other, not knowing who he was talking about.

"I thought they were coming to kill us, I didn't know they were actually looking for someone," Blake whispered to no one in particular. She didn't know who Excalibur was, but she empathized with him. She knew exactly what it was like to be hunted down by her old friends. Oberon dragged his mace across the ground.

"No one? We'll see about that," he was about to swing when he heard a shout from behind. Everyone turned, and saw him, standing alongside Loki.

"Looking for me Oberon?" Excalibur taunted. Oberon laughed.

"You're going to fight me, Excalibur? Didn't go quite well last time," Oberon said, twirling his Magistar.

"You leave the Humans alone Oberon, or I am sorry, brother, but I will kill you."

"Oh really? You in what army? A child army?" Excalibur shook his head. He knew what happened to the Lotus's ship, what the Stalker did. He looked up into the sky, and saw them. Six Lisets, all descending in formation. The rest of the Tenno and the Humans watched, transfixed. Oberon turned around and mentally counted the Tenno on the ground.

 _No one's missing, so who could it… Oh no._

Six Tenno dropped down to the surface at the same time, landing next to Excalibur, weapons in their hands. The eight of them stood together like knights in the sun, shining armor and all. Excalibur looked around at his real friends, his family. They eight of them had been through hell and back, and came out swinging. Oberon and the rest of the Tenno stood back, as well did the Humans. Oberon shuddered.

"You're still outnumbered! We have eighteen Tenno, you have a mere eight!"

"You forget, Oberon, that you have some warriors standing right behind you." He gestured to the numerous Huntsmen, who all held their weapons expertly. Oberon was caught in a checkmate.

"Oberon, you can either leave, or you will die," Loki said. Oberon balled his free hand into a fist.

 _I will not allow this inferior Tenno to besmirch me,_ Oberon thought.

"No. we will fight to the death, Excalibur. And when I walk upon the corpses of your fallen friends, I will personally–" He was cut off as he was struck with a powerful bolt of electricity, sending him flying back into the new Tenno. Volt had his smoking hand out, tiny sparks of static jumping within the clouds of vapor. Everyone turned towards him, shocked. Volt shrugged.

"What? He was talking too much." And then, like a flame on oil, all hell broke loose. Excalibur led the charge towards the new Tenno, attacking them head on. The Huntsmen regained their strength and attacked them from behind, leaving no space to escape. Excalibur saw many terrible things in his short service to the Lotus, but this was terrifying. Tenno battled Tenno, bludgeoning, cutting, ripping each other apart. Valkyr sprang in front of Excalibur, ready to pounce, but then was trampled by Rhino, who grabbed her by the head and smashed it into the ground. Excalibur ran past, silently thanking Rhino. He saw the Huntsmen fight, and was surprised. A girl in black and Mesa dueled with their machetes, Yang and Atlas brawled, both throwing explosive punches towards each other, ready to kill. Then Excalibur saw Oberon, who stood alone facing him. Excalibur stopped, and instantly, the fighting around them seemed to disappear. It was just the two of them now. Excalibur channeled the rest of his power into his hand, creating his Exalted Blade.

"This ends now, Oberon. I am sorry." Oberon shook his head.

"No, Excalibur. You forget that the Lotus is still up there," he pointed to the sky.

"No, she is not. Not anymore, thanks to the Stalker." Oberon recoiled with surprise.

"What? No!" He roared, and charged towards Excalibur, dragging his mace through the ground. Excalibur braced himself, and at the last moment he pointed his blade towards Oberon, and a bright flash of light hit the charging Tenno straight in the face.

"Dammit!" Oberon grabbed his head, dizzy from the blinding. He started to swing wildly, and his magistar collided with Frost, sending him flying across the ground. Excalibur brought his Exalted Blade down, and cut the mace in two. Oberon staggered back, the pieces of his weapon in his hands. Excalibur slashed his leg, bringing him to his knees. Excalibur was ready to end it. Just a quick swipe to the neck, and it would be over. But for a moment, he hesitated. Oberon laughed.

"What's wrong, Brother? Too scared to follow through? You started this, you know." Excalibur gripped his blade even tighter.

"Yes, I admit it. I am hesitant to end your life. But then again, I'm only Human." With that, Excalibur swung his sword, and Oberon was decapitated, his now lifeless body collapsed onto the ground.

Suddenly, everything around Excalibur seemed to stop. Though the savage fighting still raged on around him, he didn't notice it. He felt something hit the back of his head, and he fell, his vision black.


	8. Chapter 8

Excalibur woke in a Tenno pod, inside a Liset. He hit a button, and the pod opened, allowing him to step out. He opened the hatch, and jumped out, landing on soft grass. The remaining Tenno stood around him, either tending to the wounded or tending to the fallen Tenno. Excalibur looked at the dead Tenno. Many of the new Tenno were dead, their bodies splayed on the ground. He noticed that not all of the new Tenno were dead, though. A few were missing, no doubt hiding. He looked over at the old Tenno. Surprisingly, all of them were still alive, however wounded.

"Looks like you're awake," Excalibur turned around to see Trinity, who was busy healing Volt, who had a spike jammed through his leg.

"What happened?" Excalibur asked.

"We failed to protect the Tenno," Trinity answered coldly. Excalibur understood. Even though the new Tenno tried to kill them, they were still their brothers and sisters, no matter how brainwashed they were. Excalibur nodded and walked over to Loki, who was talking to Ozpin and Glynda.

"I told you, we don't know what happens after this. Our Lotus is dead, more than two thirds of us are either dead or missing, and now there are no Tenno who can fight the Corpus and the Grineer." He saw Excalibur walking towards them, and nodded.

"I see you're awake." Excalibur nodded back.

"Yes, but what happened? I blacked out."

"Nezha hit you in the head with his chakram, nothing special, but you were knocked out nonetheless."

"Ah," Excalibur turned to Ozpin and Glynda. "So what are you two planning to do with this?" Ozpin scratched his head.

"We'll keep it a secret from the citizens. If they do find out who you are, and what you're capable of, then they'll panic. They'll fear you. And fear draws the Grimm."

"Didn't a bunch of people just see our battle moments ago?" Loki asked.

"They never pay attention. We get into skirmishes with the Grimm often, so it won't be difficult to disguise it."

"Alright, but we need to discuss what happens to us. Our Lotus is dead, leaving the solar system unguarded. It'll allow the Corpus and Grineer to do whatever they want there, without the Tenno's interference. Once they've drained the resources there, they'll most definitely come for your planet next."

"And what are you suggesting?" Glynda asked.

"Us Tenno will stay here, to guard your planet from threats. Or I will, at least. The others will need some convincing, but we always stick together in the end."

Ozpin nodded. "Okay, it will happen. We'll find out who goes where later, but for now, rest." Excalibur nodded, and walked away, pondering to himself. He knew that the other Tenno were still out there, and that they could cause serious damage. Sooner or later, they would have to be hunted down. He also recognized that this new world would come with its very own problems, problems he would have to help deal with. And most importantly, the Lotus. The others believed that she was dead, but deep down, in the dark recesses of his mind, Excalibur knew she was still alive, somewhere on the planet. She'll be their biggest threat. He looked around, at the city, the green forests, the waving grass, and for the first time in a very long time, he almost felt relaxed.

Sorry for the long wait, I had a lot of things to deal with at school. But here it is, the conclusion. At least for now.


End file.
